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Become a member today caught with £400,000 worth of cocaine and £25,000 cash have received a combined jail term of 31 years crack cocaine and cannabis in the Newport area All five defendants admitted to conspiring to supply a class A controlled drug – cocaine conspiring to supply a class A controlled drug – crack cocaine and conspiring to supply a controlled drug of class B – cannabis when they appeared for sentencing at Cardiff Crown Court on Friday May 2 During Operation Dagger, Gwent Police seized almost 4kg of cocaine with a street value of £400,000, £25,000 cash, class B drugs, and a car after carrying out raids in Newport, Risca, Crosskeys, and Cardiff in September last year Five arrested in effort to dismantle suspected drugs ring❗ Officers seized an estimated £400,000 worth of class A drugs and made five arrests in early morning raids across Gwent.Read more here 🔗 https://t.co/YS5QVBA3QT pic.twitter.com/XS4NSPeKgi The court heard that Sage and Williams were the leading members of the group directing and organising the supply of the class A and B drugs said: “I would like to thank everyone who played a role in Operation Dagger “This organised crime group caused havoc while they supplied illegal drugs to customers between Risca and Rogerstone during all hours of the day and night “I would like to pay tribute to members of the Rogerstone community who provided us with vital information to help bring these five defendants to justice “Illegal drugs fill our communities with misery suffering and fear and those who prey upon the vulnerable in our society are driven by profits; they do not care about the pain they cause “The public have an important role to play in providing information that can assist us in dismantling county lines drugs lines and safeguarding vulnerable individuals.” Support quality, independent, local journalism…that mattersFrom just £1 a month you can help fund our work – and use our website without adverts.Become a member today This month marks 12 years since Caerphilly Observer went into print – with our latest edition being number 300 Originally launched by myself as a website on July 28 our independently-owned title successfully launched a fortnightly print edition in May 2013 because of reader demand We received funding to help produce the first four editions from Caerphilly County Borough Council’s Caerffili Cwm a Mynydd Rural Development Programme Partnership The grant was part-funded through the European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development and the Welsh Government the newspaper maintains its print circulation of 10,000 and an online readership of around 80,000 monthly visitors The circumstances surrounding our leap into newsprint were a little accidental if truth be told I remember meeting Caerffili Cwm a Mynydd’s Phill Loveless at the start of 2013 for a chat to find out what business grants were available to potentially start a print edition By the end of the meeting I had agreed to apply and the rest is history Loads of people wrote us off in the beginning – even the person who deals with our printing admitted to thinking we wouldn’t last long There have been plenty of challenges along the way – not least my own professional development from humble local reporter to editor and publisher It’s not easy putting a newspaper out every fortnight – and making sure we’re across all the news for our website But I am very lucky in that I have an amazing team who all work really hard And I am also fortunate in that Caerphilly Observer serves an audience that clearly cares about local issues Readers often tell us what a great job we do – but you’re also not shy in telling us when we’re wrong and we need to do better During our 12 years in print, our journalism has been recognised with six Wales Media Awards – including Scoop of the Year in 2015 and Website of the Year in 2020 The 2020 awards were actually given out in 2021 because of the pandemic The disruption this horrible period brought was a turning point for us The pandemic challenged us to keep reporting on what was happening We really started to focus on what readers wanted and we turned to you for help with our membership scheme the future of local media is still under threat local news has been paid for through local businesses advertising but this is getting harder to sustain for two main reasons – demographics and technology Younger entrepreneurs often no longer see the value in advertising in print and usually keep their marketing activity on social media That is why we have turned to our readers for help Without the financial support of readers in the future You can support our mission to save local news in Caerphilly County Borough by joining as a member using this form Our renewed focus during the pandemic also gave us the confidence to successfully bid for a BBC contract to employ our first Local Democracy Reporter in 2021 I am hugely pleased to say that Nicholas Thomas will now be staying with us after we successfully got the contract renewed after a very tough tendering process Our success with the initial BBC contract also served as a model for our Welsh Government-funded Senedd reporter project Designed to boost coverage of the Welsh Parliament we employ a dedicated reporter in Chris Haines whose work is then shared out with other titles Beginning in October 2023, the project was renewed for a second year and has won praise from all parties in Cardiff Bay (despite initial scepticism) and the wider Welsh media sector Together with my colleagues Joanne Burgess and of course our print proof-reader Barry Withers we are not resting on our laurels and will continue to work hard to keep our community informed Richard is the editor and publisher of Caerphilly Observer – which he set up in 2009. Growing up in Abertridwr, he started his career at the now defunct Campaign before stints at the Barry and District News and Brighton Argus.He can be contacted at richard@caerphilly.observer Eunice joined the Royal Navy and became a WREN at the age of 19 By NOTICEBOARD · 3 May 2025 A resident from HC-One Wales’s Parklands Care Home in Bedwas, Caerphilly, has been sharing her memories of Victory in Europe (VE) Day in celebration of the 80th anniversary of VE Day on May 8 Resident, Eunice David (pictured above and below), who was born on May 16, 1924, now aged 100 years old, was 15 at the start of World War II and 21 at the end of the war Eunice lived in Ely, Cardiff before moving to Lee-on-the-Solent with her mum which is something she is incredibly proud of Eunice was posted down to the Royal Naval Air Station in Lee-on-the-Solent where she spent her time serving her country including living and working through the Dunkirk Evacuation whilst he was in the RAF and Eunice in the WRENS whilst he had two weeks leave from Normandy and her family celebrated by having a street party in Cardiff with her neighbours and family VE Day was a time of great joy for the couple and their family as it meant a chance to look towards a safer future Eunice stayed working as a WREN for two and a half years and John stayed in the RAF for around 35 years Eunice and John travelled around the world together where Eunice recalls many experiences which she has spoken about and shared with others The couple (pictured above) went on to have two sons Eunice is now looking forward to celebrating the 80th anniversary of VE Day by joining in the street party being hosted at Parklands Care Home Eunice said: “I remember the bells ringing and people cheering but it was the silence afterwards that stayed with me - the kind of silence that comes with relief and remembrance “We were just girls doing our duty, but on VE Day we felt like we’d helped change the world.” LoadingDaily Email Updates {{contentTitle}} Caerphilly County Borough Council has agreed to apologise to a resident who raised a complaint regarding social services In a complaint taken to the Public Services Ombudsman for Wales said the council had failed to respond to the majority of issues she had raised with them Ms A said the council had inaccurately claimed it had addressed the issues in a previous meeting Ms A said she was told that the meeting was not the appropriate forum to discuss her concerns The Ombudsman has published a summary of the complaint and its outcome on its website but has not revealed any further information about the case It agreed there was “no evidence” that Ms A’s concerns had been previously discussed and said the council had not followed its own complaints process by only responding to one of her concerns The Ombudsman decided to settle the complaint without an investigation and to respond to her complaint in line with Stage 1 of the council’s social services complaints policy A new Burger King could be open in Caerphilly “within the next week” according to the man behind the plans Chris Baker, who owns 17 Burger King franchises through his company Unionburger, spoke to Caerphilly Observer about his latest in Caerphilly town centre “I’ve been in the game for 40 years now and have been looking for sites in south Wales for the past few years “We usually go for drive-thru type ones but this one will be more of a takeaway style Mr Baker added how they had plenty of applications and have hired 35 employees from the area to work in the new store It will be the second time a Burger King franchise has opened at Castle Court Shopping Centre, with the other opening in 2016 but closing a year later that franchise was not operated by Mr Baker or Unionburger A new leisure and wellbeing hub in Caerphilly could cost a further £2.5 million to build But cabinet members heard claims the new build would still prove to be better value than patching up the town’s existing leisure centre – and could eventually prove to be a lucrative source of revenue currently in the early stages of construction near Van Road is mostly being funded by around £20 million from the UK Government with the council’s own contribution estimated at £13 million said costs for the project had increased since the original estimates in 2022 He told colleagues the increase in cost was down to “a combination of factors including construction industry inflation “The project team has also worked to address the fact that the proposed main construction contractor – who had been scheduled to start works on site in September 2024 – went into administration shortly beforehand,” Cllr Morgan added “A new contractor has been engaged but this has extended the project timeline.” Caerphilly County Borough Council’s cabinet went on to approve the release of £0.5 million from its Community Infrastructure Levy and £0.9 million from unallocated funding the Welsh Government awarded in March A further £1.1 million from council contingency funds will also be released if those other sources cannot cover the extra costs will boast a six-lane swimming pool and a leisure pool with flumes and interactive water features a community room for events such as children’s parties However, the main pool will be a uniform depth of 1.1m – a move criticised by local swimmers. The council’s decision to spend on a new leisure centre for the town has proved a contentious issue among some critics, in recent months, because of proposals to shut down other sites elsewhere in the county borough A final decision on the future of centres in Bedwas Cefn Fforest and New Tredegar is expected in May and the council recently approved a third attempt to close Pontllanfraith Leisure Centre after two previous legal tussles defended the investment in the new Caerphilly leisure centre Cabinet members heard previous surveys estimated renovations at the town’s existing centre brand-spanking new leisure centre,” Cllr Pritchard said Cabinet members also heard the new leisure centre could bring in “potentially huge” revenue streams because of the variety of services on offer there Caerphilly Tesco staff have taken part in number of fundraising activities to raise more than £51,000 for two charities As part of the fundraising efforts for Tŷ Hafan Children’s Hospice and Cancer Research UK supermarket staff embarked on a ‘gruelling’ trek along a canal route from Pontypool to Goytre and back Tesco store manager and regional community lead Paul Sherman said: “As a group of colleagues we have worked extremely hard to raise much-needed funds for two very special charities “Our store community champions have worked tirelessly over recent weeks raising money through in-store events – and dozens of colleagues turned up to walk the route from Pontypool to Goytre last Wednesday “We chose Tŷ Hafan Children’s Hospice because they are a wonderful South Wales children’s charity that support the families of children who have life-shortening conditions helping to make their lives as full as they can be.” He added: “We couldn’t be prouder of our team for going the extra mile and raising money for two fantastic causes which help so many people across the local area and beyond.” Community fundraising manager at Tŷ Hafan Children’s Hospice said: “When a child’s life will be short Tŷ Hafan will walk alongside that family every step of the way “It was a pleasure to work with Tesco colleagues across south Wales who worked so hard at their fundraising to raise such an amazing amount for Tŷ Hafan One of our team was able to see the walkers off and said what a wonderful atmosphere there was.  “We are so grateful to be able to support more children and their families who need us because of this fundraising and hope to work with Tesco colleagues again in the future.” Head of partners at Cancer Research UK Eve Mitchell said: “On behalf of everyone at Cancer Research UK I wanted to say a huge thank you to all the Tesco colleagues involved for supporting our life-saving research by taking part in this walk.  “The money you raised will move progress forward towards a world where everybody lives longer our researchers are making this vision a reality but we couldn’t do it without you.” Burger King has confirmed it will be opening a new site in Caerphilly town centre The fast food chain told Caerphilly Observer that it will be returning to Caerphilly in the “near future” the new site is expected to be in Castle Court Shopping Centre though Burger King hasn’t confirmed which unit it will operate from In February last year planning permission was granted to convert the former premises of Halifax into a fast-food restaurant A Burger King spokesperson said to “stay tuned” for more updates It will be the second time a Burger King franchise has opened at Castle Court Shopping Centre, with the other opening in 2016 but closing a year later A former travel agents’ shop in Caerphilly town centre could be reopened as a nail salon Applicant Loi Van Hoang is seeking planning permission to convert the premises at 50 Cardiff Road into a new business The vacant unit was previously a Thomson travel agency then rebranded to a Tui store – with that firm now operating from a new base in the town’s Castle Court Shopping Centre Mr Hoang will seek to open the new nail business seven days a week Work to renovate the building also includes proposals to add a new customer bathroom The application is currently out for consultation and can be viewed on the Caerphilly County Borough Council website under reference 25/0172/COU Demolition work on the old indoor market on Pentrebane Street is set to begin as part of the Caerphilly Town 2035 masterplan The project will see several disused buildings on the street removed in place of a ‘modern apartment complex’ as well as some ‘commercial units’ a ‘partial’ closure of the footpath in front of some of the buildings on Clive Street will begin on Monday March 17 A closure of the lane connecting Pentrebane Street and Clive Street will be in place as needed from the same date It’s expected the demolition work will take around 20 weeks Once completed, the new Pentrebane Street complex will be made up of three new buildings around a ‘central public space’ The £21m redevelopment is funded by Caerphilly County Borough Council and the Welsh Government’s transforming towns programme Council deputy leader Jamie Pritchard said: “The redevelopment of the former indoor market on Pentrebane Street will bring much-needed housing to the town centre as well as a healthy mix of commercial and retail units.” He continued: “This part of town is in need of positive change and this project will go some way towards injecting some vibrancy into the area “Any construction project takes time with an element of disruption for its neighbours but measures are being taken to limit the impact to surrounding residents and businesses while demolition takes place “We thank everyone for their patience and cooperation as we work towards the next step in Caerphilly reaching its full potential.” Millions of pounds will be spent in Caerphilly on job skills and getting 1,000 people into work this year The county borough council will use £3.5 million from the last wave of the UK Government’s Shared Prosperity Fund (UKSPF) for schemes it hopes will help unemployed people improve their job prospects The UKSPF is entering its final year before Westminster moves to a new model of structural funding for local and regional projects Cllr Jamie Pritchard said Caerphilly will receive £11.4 million in this transition year and the majority of that money will be earmarked for running services and projects At a meeting of the council’s cabinet business enterprise and renewal manager Paul Hudson said the local authority will tailor job support to each individual Proposed services for 2025/26 include individual support for qualifications There’ll also be volunteer placements in the community and courses to increase confidence with numbers A series of skills development services will support people to search for jobs and address skills gaps in the local job market’s areas of growth The council also offers a free recruitment service the council’s regeneration services manager said a nearly 60-strong team of staff “aim to support just over 1,000 underemployed people” in the coming financial year UKSPF spending on services will also include around £1.5 million for various business support schemes an extra £450,000 for town-centre events and various sports and recreation initiatives Business support includes a continuation of grants Mr Hudson said had helped create 170 jobs and “safeguarded” a further 700 last year The events programme is “how we drive people to our town centres” and last year encouraged 50,000 extra visitors said the “enjoyable” events are “astonishing at driving footfall” Mr Hudson also said sports clubs will be able to apply for grants of up to £2,500 for improvements to their facilities The UKSPF will also include around £3.1 million of spending on infrastructure, including a link between the railway station and new leisure centre in Caerphilly town, improvements to public spaces, a business hub, and winter support to the Ffos Caerffili market the deputy leader and cabinet member for regeneration said: “The employability team have been working hard to engage residents with upskilling and finding employment Promoting the value of employment and working with employers is crucial “Employment in Caerphilly borough is now above the Welsh average and I do believe this is in part due to the proactive efforts of the council “We are working to promote private sector investment throughout the county borough The annual Caerphilly Challenge Series is set to return to the borough once again next month and runners of all fitness levels and abilities the route starts and finishes at the Coleg Gwent campus in Crosskeys taking in views from Twmbarlwm along the way The event has been organised by Caerphilly County Borough Council’s Countryside and Landscape Service Visit caerphillychallengeseries.co.uk to register for the event or to find out more information Caerphilly Observer was given an exclusive tour underneath the tarpaulin and scaffolding which has been in place since 'phase one' of the works began in 2023 Become a member to unlock this exclusive article and more Our journalism needs the support of our readers to survive - just £1 month makes a huge difference Use the arrows next to the amount to select your contribution Caerphilly Food and Drink Festival returns this weekend bringing a variety of stalls and activities Traders will be setting up their stalls for the event on Saturday April 12 entertainers and children’s funfair rides adding to the atmosphere Established monthly markets that take place in the town centre including Caerphilly Artisan Market at The Twyn Community Centre Castle Court Shopping Centre’s Food and Craft Market and the cenotaph’s Craft Fair by Crafty Legs which is being organised by Caerphilly County Borough Council Castle Street and the Twyn Car Park between 9am and 5pm This event is part-funded by Caerphilly Town Council as well as through the UK Government’s Shared Prosperity Fund and organised by Caerphilly County Borough Council Communities across Caerphilly County Borough have decided to fight to save their libraries in the hope the council will listen to them on the issue The latest is the Aber Valley where a vocal campaign against its library’s potential axe is gaining momentum What's next for library services in Caerphilly County Borough Ten libraries in Caerphilly County Borough remain at risk of closure under council cost-cutting plans Reducing the number of sites to a handful of regional “hubs” will “provide a more sustainable and resilient library service” for customers Sites in Aberbargoed, Abercarn, Abertridwr, Bedwas, Deri, Llanbradach, Machen, Nelson, Oakdale and Pengam may all still be subject to closure The council is likely to push ahead with the reforms despite a clear majority of respondents disagreeing with the proposals during a recent public consultation Just one in seven who took part in the consultation said they fully agreed with the council’s vision Hundreds of people said they disagreed with the council’s plans because of transport issues or a lack of reliable public transport routes to their nearest proposed “hub” Those sites have been earmarked for Bargoed People who disagreed with the council’s proposals also said they wanted a local service within walking distance The most common reason for supporting the proposals was that a better service could be provided in fewer locations Caerphilly Council spends nearly half a million pounds annually on its library service and has warned of “significant pressure” on finances council leader Cllr Sean Morgan and cabinet member for libraries Cllr Carol Andrews said libraries had “evolved” and “become so much more than a place to borrow and read books” They said a hub environment – such as the one already operating at Rhymney Library – “acts as a one-stop shop for residents” The proposed closures and the development of more hubs would “protect and future-proof” the council’s library service But the strength of feeling displayed during the recent consultation demonstrates how many library users feel about the proposals – although the council has conceded two sites The council said it acted as an “anchor tenant” in buildings where its libraries in Newbridge and New Tredegar are housed and if they were to close the knock-on effect would potentially “present more of a risk to those communities than the loss of a library alone” It has now proposed setting up two “tiers” of hubs with sites in Tier Two – currently expected to be Newbridge and Ystrad Mynach – anticipated to have shorter opening hours than those in Tier One New Tredegar Library would remain open but would be reviewed within three years according to the council’s latest proposals The local authority will shortly begin seeking further views from residents in a new round of public consultation which will focus on the specific proposals for each library in the county borough That seven-week consultation is expected to begin on January 22 following a discussion at a council cabinet meeting Senior councillors in Caerphilly will push ahead with proposals to close up to ten of the county borough’s libraries They believe concentrating on fewer sites and developing “hubs” there will improve the library service and allow users to access other organisations – as well as saving the council money Opposition councillors have criticised the proposal to shut “valuable” smaller libraries and argue some people may struggle to travel further afield if their local site closes Under the latest proposals Risca and Ystrad Mynach would remain open as hubs Newbridge and New Tredegar would also stay open but the latter would be reviewed in the next three years The libraries still at risk of closure are in Aberbargoed Caerphilly County Borough Council’s cabinet members agreed on Thursday January 16 to a further round of public consultation welcomed the “significant” response to a first consultation round on the general proposals She said the strength of opposition to potentially shutting libraries in Newbridge and New Tredegar – and the fact the council serves as an “anchor tenant” in those buildings – had persuaded the local authority to remove those two sites from its closure list The council also said developing a “community outreach service” will “mitigate” the effects of any closures The refitted Rhymney Library has been cited as an example of what the council hopes to achieve with its hub model which would be home to a variety of council services as well as other third-sector organisations the manager of the Caerphilly Cares services said hubs would act as a “gateway” for residents seeking support from a range of public services She said the hub in Rhymney had helped residents access food parcels help with benefits payments and housing – as well as the usual book-borrowing library services – all under one roof also said the new-look Rhymney Library had seen an “exponential increase in footfall” the council’s education and corporate services director would “better focus these resources” and offer an “opportunity to improve the services we currently offer” But a majority of respondents to the first consultation round said they disagreed with the council’s plans and several Plaid Cymru opposition councillors have also criticised the proposals In comments to the Local Democracy Reporting Service Cllr Colin Mann said travel and access are “a big factor” and claimed the council “seems to ignore the value of having local services” “The whole thinking seems to concentrate on people who have access to their own private transport,” he added Cllr Teresa Parry questioned what would happen to residents “who have to travel and the cost implications for a family having to use public transport when many bus routes have been cut or services greatly reduced” Cllr Gary Enright said he felt the potential closures were “a done deal already” “Libraries are a vital and irreplaceable part of a cultured society and one of the very few places left where you do not have to pay to get in,” he added Caerphilly Council will launch its second round of consultation on January 22 It will also host a series of drop-in sessions Caerphilly County Borough Council can save nearly £1 million by restructuring senior management the cash-strapped local authority’s new top officer believes.  who was appointed chief executive in January said “every part of the organisation is being looked at” in a bid to cut costs and meet “significant savings targets” The relatively new role of deputy chief executive will be removed from the payroll when the current post-holder Caerphilly says it must plug an estimated £45 million budget gap over the next three financial years It has just passed its budget for 2025/26 which included a series of service and job cuts the local authority claimed would help balance the books Some of those moves have proved contentious – as have ongoing consultations on a series of proposed library and leisure centre closures and the hiring of external consultants to help identify unnecessary spending Mr Edmunds said it was “important that the senior management team leads by example” when implementing cost-cutting measures “We have indicated previously that staffing levels in the organisation will reduce over the coming years and this overall reduction should be reflected within the leadership team,” he explained “These changes will deliver significant savings with a fit for purpose The axing of the deputy chief executive position is central to the new savings at the top of the local authority then-chief executive Christina Harrhy said the move “ensures the council has sufficient capacity at the top of the organisation to deliver positive change” Mr Street, the current deputy, took up the post in May 2023 He served as the council’s interim chief executive for several months last year during the search for Ms Harrhy’s successor According to the council’s pay policy for the current financial year the deputy chief executive position had a salary of £145,903 Caerphilly Council said the plans for restructuring its management could lead to savings “in excess of £881,000” said: “The implementation of this new structure will help achieve significant savings whilst also sending an important message within the organisation that the council is serious about transforming its services and delivering positive change even within its constrained budget.” The move has also drawn support from the opposition benches Blackwood’s independent councillor Nigel Dix said he “strongly supports” the decision Cllr Dix continued: “I never believed we needed a deputy chief executive anyway We’re facing difficult times financially This is the sort of saving we need to make instead of cutting frontline services.” Caerphilly County Borough Council has appointed Richard Edmunds as its new chief executive has worked for the local authority for six years and has most recently served as its corporate director of education and corporate services He said: “It’s an absolute privilege to be appointed as the chief executive of Caerphilly Council and I am very much looking forward to getting to work.” Mr Edmunds’ appointment brings to a close a rocky few months for the council following the departure of his predecessor Caerphilly Council reportedly paid her a £209,000 settlement following a long period of absence and councillors were warned to keep quiet about the details But council leader Cllr Sean Morgan later referred himself to Wales’ public services ombudsman allegedly over discussions of the reported payoff with a member of the public The ombudsman has since decided not to investigate Cllr Morgan – but the nation’s auditor general is still expected to look into the sums agreed for Ms Harrhy’s departure Councillors met in private on Thursday January 30 to confirm Mr Edmunds’ appointment as the new chief executive Mr Edmunds said: “My initial focus will be to raise the standards of service we provide to our customers and to ensure we can do the basics really well “These are the foundations of a well-run and well-led council and I believe they are fundamental to our onward success.” He also reflected on the ongoing financial challenges facing the council – which claims it must find another £47 million in budget savings by March 2028 my aim will be to ensure that we can meet the needs of those that depend on us in spite of the debilitating financial situation facing public services at present,” Mr Edmunds said our residents need us and our customers need to be at the heart of everything we do and every decision we make.” Cllr Morgan welcomed the appointment of “dedicated and passionate” Mr Edmunds who in his previous position as corporate director was a regular face at council meetings outlining the local authority’s strategy and policies “I would like to extend my congratulations to Ed on his appointment as chief executive,” Cllr Morgan said look forward to building on the positive relationship that we’ve established over recent years and moving this council forward “Ed has a track record of delivery in education corporate services and transformation and I look forward to working with him while we embrace innovation to continue to deliver quality services Efforts to regenerate Caerphilly town centre have been praised by Wales’ future generations commissioner during a visit to the town Derek Walker toured planned regeneration sites including the site of the new leisure centre and Pentrebane Street alongside council leader Sean Morgan and Senedd Member Hefin David The commissioner also visited the recently developed container-style market Ffos Caerffili which forms part of the ongoing Caerphilly town 2035 masterplan Caerphilly County Borough Council says it has spoken with Caerphilly Youth Council for feedback as well as hosting workshops with primary and comprehensive schools Mr Walker said: “The progress of the Caerphilly Town 2035 masterplan is hopeful and an example of the sort of revitalising of a town centre which can be scaled up across Wales “I’ve highlighted Caerphilly town centre’s focus on improving wellbeing and sustainability in my upcoming recommendations to public bodies in my assessment of progress on wellbeing in Wales “As we prepare to mark ten years of the Wellbeing of Future Generations Act involving communities to make sure we all have a better future.” added: “We are proud of the work the masterplan is achieving in Caerphilly town centre Across the planning stage we have engaged with young people on multiple occasions to gather their ideas and perspectives on their town and how it could be improved.  “We want our young people to see that Caerphilly continues to grow and develop into a better place to live and by the time they are making decisions about their future these significant interventions will have come to fruition “We’ll be continuing to talk to as many members of our community as possible over the coming weeks and hope they’ll continue to share their ambitions for our town centre with us.” said: “It’s a pleasure to welcome the future generations commissioner to Caerphilly today and show him all the brilliant work going on to create a more modern and eco-friendly town centre “The vision behind the plans is clear with wellbeing greater transport connections and increased leisure facilities all being built around our very own local history hub that is Caerphilly Castle It’s a very exciting time for Caerphilly and the future generations who will experience it.” Council tax bills in Caerphilly could rise by 7.9% under new draft budget proposals meaning residents could pay at least £1.46 more each week from April people living in average Band D properties could have to fork out £114 more in council tax over the course of the year The proposed hike comes as Caerphilly County Borough Council warns 2025 will be another year of “difficult decisions” on spending The council believes it has saved £5.3 million through its Mobilising Team Caerphilly cost-cutting measures but will still need to find another £16.8 million to balance the books over the next two years also include a range of cuts and reshuffles aimed at saving money These include proposals to axe the council’s Community Safety Warden scheme and several school crossing patrols and many may be asked to carry out their roles with less money available to them from April Caerphilly Council is expected to receive a 4.6% increase in its settlement – the Welsh Government funding which makes up the bulk of councils’ income nationwide This proposed increase is slightly higher than the provisional average figure for Welsh councils and will mean an extra £16.1 million is delivered to Caerphilly for public services But that rise in funding will not rule out a hike in council tax In fact, the 7.9% increase proposed for this year will end up being a slightly higher jump in bills than councillors signed off on last spring this is how much more a bill payer in each tax band is set to pay under the proposed new rate: The council’s budget proposals will go out for public consultation before being debated by councillors ahead of the publication of a final budget plan Opposition councillors have questioned why empty properties can’t be turned around quicker with 346 council houses currently empty and without tenants Caerphilly County Borough Council terms these properties as ‘voids’ and as of December 2024 a ‘void’ property was empty on average for 218 days They could be undergoing repair or refurbishment waiting to be let or kept back to house people who have suffered an emergency – such as flooding The figure is slightly down on the average number of empty council houses over the past year But councillors want to know why empty properties can’t be re-let quicker – especially when there are 6,420 people on the council’s housing waiting list have also pointed to the increasing costs to the local authority of temporary accommodation councils have a duty to help people who are homeless or who are under the threat of homelessness This can include the provision of temporary accommodation such as in a house in multiple occupation (HMO) or a bed and breakfast while a suitable permanent property is found According to figures released under the Freedom of Information Act to opposition councillors the cost of this to Caerphilly Council was £4.06million while this financial year it is estimated to hit £7.742m There are around 549 people in temporary accommodation at the moment Single person households are in temporary accommodation for an average of two years while family households are there for an average of six months Councillor Greg Ead said: “If I was living in bed and breakfast and was given the option of waiting over six months for an empty house to be made perfect for me to move into; or I could move in immediately to a perhaps not perfect but suitable home of my own “We are informed that there is a housing crisis across the country but I was absolutely shocked by the scale of empty council-owned homes across Caerphilly CBC Over 400 homeless people could be accommodated in empty council properties Clearly this crisis is one of the council’s own making “This issue can no longer be ignored and we need action now from the Labour council to dramatically speed up the time it takes to move new tenants out of unsuitable temporary accommodation into a council-owned home.” Cllr Dix said the “shocking” figures released to him and Plaid Cymru showed a “total failure” He said: “The council failure to re-let the 346 empty properties has led to an eye watering £1,556,681 a year in lost revenue “Labour-led Caerphilly likes to plead poverty and plans to make millions in cuts to frontline services their abject failure to manage our housing stock is failing people who are desperate to be housed and costing millions – which could be spent on frontline services.” It’s too simple an argument to link the number of council voids with the increase in demand for temporary accommodation who is Caerphilly Council’s cabinet member with responsibility for housing He explained the increase in spending on temporary accommodation has been driven by demand for one and two-bedroom properties – brought on by demographic changes “Currently 50% – 274 out of 549 – of our temporary accommodation is made up of single persons “Caerphilly Homes has a limited amount of move on stock with around 20% being made up of one bedroom accommodation – 1868 out of 10,624 “There is a real lack of one bedroom accommodation in the private and social housing sector that is why this Labour authority has stepped in and provided temporary accommodation started the building of new council properties and provided over £1million towards the purchasing of 27 privately-owned properties to provide housing for families who would otherwise find themselves in temporary accommodation.” To meet current demand for single-bedroom flats Cllr Cook said an extra 450 single occupancy council homes will need to be built over the next five to ten years There is also the changing legislative and regulatory landscape giving more rights to tenants This has led to many private sector landlords selling-up and exiting the sector Caerphilly Council is using its Caerphilly Keys leasing scheme to encourage more landlords to lease their properties The Welsh Housing Quality Standard dictates to councils the condition a property must be in before it is habitable has increased from 33 to 44 and this has had a knock-on effect in the time it takes to turn properties around More staff dedicated to getting properties ready means less time for routine maintenance on properties housing existing tenants The local authority has also enhanced its own re-letting standards – decorating empty properties and installing flooring Cllr Cook said this was to support tenants further and reduce potential future maintenance issues But he did agree that the current number of voids was “not good enough” with an extra 100 properties out of action usually has around 2% of its 10,000 properties as ‘void’ but this has increased to around 3% recently Supply chain issues also mean it is difficult to source materials He added: “Bringing empty properties back into use is a high priority for us but we must manage new Welsh Housing Quality Standard 2023 compliance checks.”  A main road in Caerphilly was closed for several hours yesterday after a car caught fire The blaze happened by the traffic lights opposite the Texaco garage on St Cenydd Road South Wales Fire and Rescue Service was called at around 12.45pm on Sunday April 13 A fire service spokesperson said: “Crews and an appliance attended from Caerphilly two hose reel jets and small tools were utilised to extinguish the fire.” St Cenydd Road was closed between the Texaco garage and St Cenydd roundabout on Sunday afternoon The fire was extinguished by around 1.30pm The leader of Caerphilly County Borough Council has pledged to protect key services in the proposed budget for 2025/26 Cllr Sean Morgan said the budget “has been designed to ensure we continue to deliver a wide range of key services with our residents at the heart of everything we do”.  “We are also placing a strong emphasis on getting the basics right to ensure we meet the needs of our communities,” he added The local authority recently carried out a public consultation on its draft proposals, and has decided to continue with a planned 7.9% increase in council tax bills Cllr Morgan defended the rise as “modest” and said “we still have one of the lowest council tax rates in Wales” He reiterated the council is facing “inescapable financial pressures” and anticipated a funding shortfall of £45 million over the next three years The council has proposed using reserves as a one-off measure to balance this year’s budget and now expects to use £4.9 million of that money – up from £4.3 million in the initial draft proposals It was also confirmed the Welsh Government’s final funding settlement for Caerphilly would be £81,000 less than originally planned The council’s budget for 2025/26 includes spending on statutory services – those which councils have to provide – and will include £7.9 million for social care and £25.1 million on a new waste strategy The final budget proposals are scheduled for approval by the council’s cabinet at lunchtime on Thursday February 27 The budget will then go before all councillors at another meeting later that day for a debate and final vote on its contents Primary school children in Caerphilly have been excluded from planned cuts to free pupil transport Caerphilly County Borough Council’s cabinet members have agreed to pursue changes that will only affect secondary school-aged children Secondary pupils currently qualify for free transport if they live more than two miles from their school The proposals mean affected pupils may face up to six-mile round trip journeys on foot to attend lessons The council says this is in line with the Welsh Government’s rules on statutory transport provision The local authority argues its spending on school transport has ballooned from £6.4 million in 2015 to an estimated £12 million in 2024 and costs “are continuing to increase” told a meeting of colleagues on Wednesday February 19 that the council’s current policy is “generous” She explained Caerphilly is one of only three local authorities in Wales still providing transport above the statutory minimum Senior transport officer Kelly Adams said spending on the service had increased “significantly” due to rising fuel prices and the impact of inflation affecting all aspects of the sector the council’s head of education planning added the number of pupils with additional learning needs (ALN) had also risen requiring more expensive transport options The council has confirmed ALN pupils will not be affected by any changes to Caerphilly’s school transport policy Nearly 1,000 people took part in a public consultation on the initial proposals and the vast majority said changes would directly impact them or their children The main area of concern for respondents was the additional distance and time it would take for children to walk to school More than 400 people said they would instead have to rely on a car received his colleagues’ unanimous backing when he suggested tailoring the proposals to only include secondary-school pupils On the recommendation of a backbench scrutiny committee the council cannot make any changes until a “safe route assessment” is completed for each walking route An “experienced” specialist will be paid an estimated £192,500 for this work which is expected to conclude in July for a final decision on the proposed changes said it was “very important we are not marking our own homework” when the assessments are carried out The council expects to save nearly £1.1 million if it makes the proposed cuts to secondary-school transport Charity representatives have urged Caerphilly County Borough Council to protect the third sector youth services and community centres in its budget plans Members of various voluntary organisations met on Wednesday January 29 to discuss the council’s proposals for 2025/26 Head of finance Stephen Harris told the meeting the council’s budget outlook was “extremely challenging despite the better-than-expected financial settlement” from the Welsh Government – which accounts for around three-quarters of the local authority’s income of GAVO (Gwent Association of Voluntary Organisations) sought assurances the council was not seeking to cut funding in its service level agreements with volunteer groups Mr Harris said those agreements “will remain as they are” in the coming year but added a senior council officer would be working with charities to identify where further savings could be made in future speaking in her role as a charity representative asked whether it was appropriate this work was being done by an officer responsible for a council service which provides support similar to that of GAVO Mr Harris said any proposals would require cabinet approval and stressed “no decisions have been made” regarding the councils’ support to charities The officer’s role in the work was “not to make decisions it is to carry out the consultation process” Cllr Pritchard noted several budget proposals affecting youth services including a £125,000 reduction of the general budget She said young people “have had a raw deal” because of the Covid-19 pandemic and noted the council was trying to “cut down on antisocial behaviour” The draft budget proposal to “do away” with a team of Community Safety Wardens was “very undesirable” Cllr Walter Williams raised the proposal to hike charges for the Caerphilly Adventures and Positive Futures service by 20% Mr Harris said this was an outdoor activity organisation “provided largely to schools” but said any price increases “wouldn’t directly impact on children” But Cllr Teresa Parry said schools were already struggling with their budgets Further costs “are going to negatively affect them” Committee member Roger Evans questioned several aspects of the council’s spending or policies including the hiring of hundreds of extra staff since 2022 its use of “gagging orders” to “keep staff silent about any embarrassment” He also claimed the local authority should give more support to community centres but accepted recent discussions around council departments making more use of those buildings had been “positive” Mr Harris said the committee members’ comments would all be noted and presented to the cabinet as part of the budget consultation process but told Mr Evans that “in most cases budgets will already have existed” for recent hires He also disputed the claim around non-disclosure agreements being used to silence “embarrassment to the council” A mobile liver screening van will be coming to Caerphilly next week Free liver scans will be available from the van which will be parked up outside Morrisons from 10am to 4pm on Monday March 24 one in ten adults could be walking around with liver disease without knowing as the early stages are usually asymptomatic said: “One in three of us are at risk of liver disease and the numbers of people being diagnosed have been increasing at an alarming rate.   “Liver damage develops silently with no signs or symptoms and people often don’t realise they have a problem until it is too late Although the liver is remarkably resilient, if left until symptoms appear Ms Healy continued: “The Love Your Liver roadshow is a great opportunity for people to find out their risk of liver disease Approximately 10% of the people we scan need to have further checks.”  Nine in ten cases of liver disease are preventable People who can’t visit the screening van can still check their liver health by visiting the British Liver Trust website and doing the online screening test